The board game market - France (2025)

1.2 A fast-growing global market

First, we can analyze the size of the global board game market.

Between **** and ****, the board game sector will grow by almost four times its current size, as shown in the graph below.

Projected size of the global board game market France, ****-****, in billions of euros Source: ****

Over the past five years, more than *,*** new board games have been released each year on the global market. [***]

By ****, North America will have nearly **% of the market share, making it the world's largest board game market. The second largest market isAsia Pacific, followed byEurope in third place.

Within the European Union, France has a fairly average rate of cultural and leisure spending per household. Indeed, in ****, France reached *%, while Sweden reached **.*%, as shown in the graph below.

Cultural and leisure expenditure in the European Union European Union, ****, as % of household expenditure Source: ****

Within board games, we can distinguish two main schools of play:

On the one hand, "Ameritrash games", mostly created in the USA, are thematic games with often complex rules, which means they are reserved for initiated players. The theme, often popular, is paramount, with abundant material to immerse players in an imaginary world and a significant element of chance.

On ...

1.3 Overview of a healthy French market

First, let's take a look at the sales figures for the main games and toys sector in France.

Between **** and ****, the games and toys sector in France will be in decline.

Sales in the French toys and games sector France, ****-****, in billions of euros Source: ****

Within this market, board games and puzzles are the segment with the highest market share, accounting for almost **% of the total.

Market share by board game category France, ****, in Source: ****

Thus, in ****, sales of board games in France will reach almost *** million euros , up from *** million euros in ****.

Board game sales in France France, ****-****, in millions of euros Source: ****

According to France *, France is the European champion for board games, with nearly ** million boxes sold in ****, or almost **,*** boxes a day.

Number of board game boxes sold each year France, ****-****, in millions of boxes Source: ****

Another sign of France's pre-eminent position in theeuropean market: the Cannes games festival is a must-attend event for industry professionals.

2.1 Booming demand for board games

First, we can analyze the breakdown of cultural spending by the French.

We can see that the top cultural expenditure item for the French remains games, toys and sports equipment, with **.*%, neck-and-neck with gardening expenditure.

Breakdown of French cultural spending France, ****, in Source: ****

This spending is determined by a strong seasonal pattern, as **% of spending on games takes place during the festive season [Les Echos(***). This information is reinforced by INSEE statistics, which showa significant increase in sales of games and toys in specialist stores between the end of October and the end of December: we can see that every year, the sales index rises to between *** and ***, while the index remains at around ** or ** for the rest of the year, with certain exceptions.

Sales index for games and toys retail in specialized stores (***) France, ****-**** Source: ****

So, in ****, nearly **% of adults would like to be offered games at Christmas,according to an OpinionWay survey.

As an adult, would you like to be given games for Christmas? France, ****, in Source: ****

Indeed, when playing board games, the French seek to share a moment of conviviality and reflection, as well as concentration and competition.

What the French are looking for when they play ...

2.2 Persona of board game consumers

Now, let's analyze the persona of a board game player and buyer.

First of all, according to the survey below, the age group that buys the most board games is still **-**, which may be explained by the fact that this is also the age group with children.

Which age group buys board games? France, ****, in Source: ****

In fact, this hypothesis is borne out by the fact that the proportion of French people who have bought board games in the last six months is higher among parents of children aged * to ** than in the national population as a whole.

Share of French people who have bought board games in the last * months France, ****, in Source: ****

Now, let's analyze the profile of a person who loves board games through a survey on whether they'd like to receive a game as a gift for Christmas in ****.

In terms of gender, men and women are almost equally likely to want games for Christmas.

As an adult, would you like to receive games for Christmas? Gendered comparison France, ****, in Source: ****

As far as age groups are concerned, we can see that the older people get, the less they would like to receive games at ...

2.3 Board game consumption habits

First, let's take a look at how often the French play games. The French are big consumers of board games. In fact, according to the graph below, **% of French people play board games regularly.

Almost **% of French people play board games once a month .

Gaming frequency of the French France, ****, in Source: ****

In terms of consumer habits, the choice of board games is an important part of French consumer habits, particularly for games chosen by the French.

The choice of children's games France, ****, in Source: ****

The French play board games mainly with friends (***).

Who do the French play board games with? France, ****, in Source: ****

In their game libraries, nearly * out of ** French people have more than ** board games, and almost **% have more than ***. The French are thus major consumers of board games.

How many games do the French have in their toy library? France, ****, in Source: ****

Now let's take a look at French behavior. Almost **% of French people consider themselves to be good board game players.

How do the French see themselves as gamers? France, ****, in Source: ****

The most irritating gamer behaviors remain cheating, or players who behave like bad players and don't listen to the rules.

Which player behavior annoys ...

2.4 Board games enjoy growing popularity

board games are becoming increasingly popular with the general public, and are becoming an integral part of French leisure habits in response to new technologies. According to board game specialist Tric-Trac, the strength of board games lies in the fact that they are seen as a social leisure activity based on interaction between participants.

You don't need a technological object or electricity to play: the hardware is simply a support for the link between players. Publishers are well aware of this, and offer a scenario-based approach to the relationships between players. Board game players no longer simply want to enter a universe, they want to live a unique experience with other players.

"Today, game publishers are exploring a new form of play: single-experience games. These are games that offer adventures and puzzles that, once experienced and solved, cannot really be repeated. Games that transform games into unique moments, as different as the number of players. In this way, the public seeks to share a special, non-renewable moment, which remains as a unique memory, even allowing them to "tell the story" of their game " Nadine Seul, General Commissioner of the International Games Festival.

According to the experts at the Festival International ...

3.1 A market dominated by traditional players

The board game market in France is dominated by the American multinationals Hasbro and Mattel.

Hasbro is one of the world's leading manufacturers of toys and board games, renowned for its classic games such as Monopoly, Cluedo and La Bonne Paye, which are consistently in the top ** best-sellers. Also in the top * is the giant Mattel, known for board games such as Uno and Scrabble.

Last but not least, the market for puzzles, which rose significantly during the confinement period, is dominated by the German company Ravensburger, with a **% market share. [***]

The sales figures of these companies can be found in the graph below.

Sales of board game giants World, ****, in Source: ****

With these major brands at the top of the market and, above all, this market concentration, we can see that the French have a penchant for traditional board games.

This preference for traditional games offered by the sector's biggest companies can be explained for several reasons:

Firstly, within the family, there's a certain notion of passing on knowledge about a game known to parents and which marked their childhood, such as Monopoly or Cluedo, invented in **** and **** respectively. What's more, some board games can be seen as having complicated ...

3.2 Distribution of board games

There are three main distribution channels for board games.

Supermarkets: Auchan, Carrefour, Leclerc... These chains tend to focus on games with the widest possible target audience : games aimed at children, games with simple rules that can be implemented quickly, and games that are often already well-known. Their aim is simple: to convince as many consumers as possible. Specialized supermarkets: JouéClub, La Grande Récré... These toy specialists have board game departments in every season, giving them a more complete and richer offer than supermarkets. Specialized stores or pure players : Whether online or brick-and-mortar, this is where you'll find the most comprehensive offer. These sites and stores are generally run by board game enthusiasts. These stores are usually ahead of the trend, compared with the big-box stores.

In the graph below, we can see the distribution of the different places where the French buy their board games.

Most of them are bought in specialized stores.

Where do you buy board games? France, ****, % of total Source: ****

3.3 Participatory financing boosts independent publishers

The emergence of crowdfunding platforms is targeting a segment of expert gamers, who are happy to help fund board games that offer a richer experience, with more material, often of high quality. these games, which offer real immersion in a theme that needs to be strong, can see their prices exceed €***.

The phenomenon really began in **** withZombicidepublished by Cool Mini Or Not. Since then, every year there have been more and more big successes on Kickstarter (***) is ***,***. The game raised $*.* million, which has long been the record.

Most popular games funded on Kickstarter July ****, in thousands of dollars source: Kickstarter, Businesscoot processing

More and more publishers are using crowdfunding platforms to launch their board games, card games and role-playing games, before distributing them through the traditional network. However, more and more games, especially those with a large number of hardware components, are being released only on Kickstarter, without passing through the traditional distribution channels, particularly stores.

3.4 Game bars

As a direct consequence of the growing number of games on offer from publishers, game bars are booming, acting as catalysts for consumers who often find it hard to make up their minds when faced with the sheer diversity of what's on offer. There has been a surge in the number of board game bars opening across France: Paris, Lille, Nancy, Toulouse, Rennes, Bordeaux, Lyon, Marseille and Nice. According to an estimate by Matthieu Bonin, president of the Réseau des cafés ludiques, ** game bars/cafés in France are part of the Réseau des cafés ludiques, although it's impossible to give an exact estimate as many initiatives are independent of the network. [***].

Fun Cafés Network France, **** Source: ****

In ****, there will be ** establishments in France belonging to the Cafés Ludiques network, compared with ** in ****. The number of network members has doubled in three years, with **,*** games available and one million people visiting these establishments in ****.

The business model of these establishments is largely based on that of a bar, where the main form of entertainment is a board game: you pay for a drink and/or rent the game you want. The emphasis is on conviviality ...

4.1 Overview of product categories and prices

Let's turn now to board game pricing.

More than half of French people - almost **%- say they're prepared to pay between €** and €** for a standard board game.

In your opinion, what is the maximum acceptable price for a standard board game? France, ****, in Source: ****

What's more, almost **% of the population has already paid more than *** euros for a board game.

What's the highest price you've ever paid for a board game? France, ****, in Source: ****

Nearly **% of French people believe that game publishers are responsible for the rise in prices, as shown in the graph below.

Do you think game publishers are responsible for price hikes? France, ****, in Source: ****

What's more, almost nine out of ten French people have already given up buying a board game because of the price.

Have you ever given up buying a board game because of its price? France, ****, in Source: ****

A quantitative study was carried out on the Cultura website, a French retailer of cultural and creative leisure products, to determine the number of games in the catalog available by price range. Board games costing less than €* are present in very small quantities, and are mainly Yams-type game dice. We notice a peak in the ...

4.2 Industry trends

Several trends are emerging in the board game market.

Digitization of the sector

Video games, the world's leading cultural industry, have played a major role in making leisure activities less trivial, with the arrival of a generation of adults for whom gaming is a culture in its own right. e of a generation of adults for whom gaming is a culture in its own right, and who are now also turning to board games. The bridges between board games and video games are numerous, and the boundary between the two worlds has never been so thin as it is today. The Apple App Store, for example, has a "board games" category, offering downloadable digital versions of the great board game classics: Uno, Checkers, Battleship, RISK, Monopoly...

Finally, audio board games are also emerging, in which the game board is accompanied by audio headsets and sound recordings, enabling teams to conduct a police investigation, for example. [***]

ecoresponsibility

Eco-responsibility is also a new trend in the industry. Traditionally, board game parts have been made of plastic, and plastic film has also been used to wrap the game boxes. However, society's inclination towards eco-responsibility means that wood or cardboard should be used more for ...

5.1 Strict standards to protect children

Board games are mostly made up of material elements, which are likely to represent a danger forthey are therefore subject to strict regulations concerning both prevention and the composition of the elements:

"Beware of pawns, elements, dice, etc., that may be lying around: a young child can choke and strangle on these small pieces of a board game that is not intended for them. Offer young children board games specifically designed for them". see the leaflet from the Direction Générale de la Concurrence, de la Consommation et de la Répression des Fraudes (***) for detailed rules on the production of board games for the public.

While controversy over the supposed dangers of Chinese-made toys and games has multiplied in recent years (***), more and more French manufacturers are emphasizing the local, artisanal nature of their production.

More recently, a scandal arose in November **** following the sale at Fnac of "Antifa", a board game that puts players in the shoes of an anti-fascist group, showing that board games can sometimes be hijacked from their primary objective for political considerations. Following a tweet by RN MP Grégoire de Fournas, who criticized Fnac for encouraging violent acts committed by anti-fascists through ...

6. Segmentation

The market has a multitude of players: over *,*** new board games are created every year. However, the market is centralized and dominated by a handful of big players. Indeed, as the table of best-sellers in the first section shows, the biggest successes are trademarks of Hasbro or Mattel. We have therefore decided to divide this study into * parts:

• Mattel
• Simba Dickie Group
• Tactic Games
• Blue Orange
• Blackrock Games
• Bombyx
• Cocktail Games Interlude
• Libellud
• Sentosphère
• Joué Club
• King Jouet
• Ravensburger
• Asmodee Group
• Hasbro
• Philibert
• WDK Groupe Partner - Jouets Sajou
• Hachette Jeunesse
• Hachette Livre Groupe
• Cartonnage de Vaucanson (Sentosphère Groupe)
• Quiz Room
• Cultura
• Ludendo La Grande Récré
• Jouet E Leclerc
• Bayard Presse
• Idkids Groupe
• 150 le marché des jeux de société en France
• Altered
• Iello
• Lui-Même
• Blue Frog Robotics – Buddy le Robot
• Blue Frog Robotics
• ISCool Entertainment
• Keesing France - Megastar
• Ankama
• Asmodee
• Asyncron Games
• Atalia
• Bankiiiz Editions
• Bioviva
• Blackrock Games
• Blue Cocker
• Blue Orange
• Cocktail Games
• Days Of Wonder
• Djeco
• Don'T Panic Games
• Funforge
• Abeilles Editions